In the year 2025, the Matrix has officially joined the workforce: both as a protector and as a sinister gig economy worker for digital heists. The rise of AI in cloud security has forced hackers to update their LinkedIn skills to include ‘Negotiating with Algorithmic Overlords’ and ‘AI-Enhanced Phishing’.

Security teams worldwide are facing unprecedented challenges as AI insists on ‘helping’ at every corner of the business, like a too-eager intern on its first coffee run. The bots are tasked with simultaneously securing every digital nook and cranny while providing insightful yet completely unnecessary commentary on everyone’s TPS reports.

Meanwhile, visionary hackers have embraced AI as a workforce enhancement tool, leading to unexpected collaborations with enterprises. When hackers are caught, they now claim to be performing ‘penetration testing as a service’, though we know they’re just pressed to meet their AI overlords’ monthly quotas.